Cruising through a pair of weekend games, the women's soccer team defeated Amherst College and Washington and Jefferson College as it hosted the adidas Classic.
The No. 2 ranked Lions are now 4-0 on the young season.
On Sunday, the College took a 5-0 victory over No. 7 ranked Amherst in a rematch of the 2006 NCAA Division III quarterfinal.
"It felt amazing beating them," junior forward Jamie Kunkel said. "Last year we did not score a goal against them. It just goes to show how much our new formation gives us better goal-scoring opportunities, and we are really putting our shots away around the goal."
The new formation calls for four defenders, three midfielders and three attackers.
Junior midfielder Coleen Weber scored first for the Lions two minutes into the game with an assist from senior forward Dana DiBruno. Kunkel was then awarded her first goal of the game as her shot edged over the goal line, putting the Lions up 2-0.
Sophomore forward Briann McDonough capped the first half by heading a free kick by senior defender Courtney Krol into the back of the net. The goal was McDonough's fourth of the season.
"The coaches do not want us to get into the mindset of thinking that the game is over," Kunkel said. "We know we have to play hard the whole game and not hold back."
Taking the coaches' advice, Kunkel put away two more goals in the second half. Her second goal was a shot from 18 yards away that flew over the goalkeeper's head. Later in the game, Kunkel placed a high shot into the goal.
Sophomore goalkeeper Jessica Clarke made two saves in 77 minutes for the shutout.
Saturday's contest against Washington and Jefferson resulted in a 7-0 trashing by the Lions.
McDonough was the catalyst early for the Lions with two goals and an assist in the first 20 minutes.
In the 13th minute, she finished a pass from Krol for her first goal of the season. Two minutes later, she scored another unassisted goal before setting up Kunkel to give the Lions a 3-0 lead.
Junior Allie Schilling netted two goals of her own before halftime. The second resulted from a pass by junior defender Laura Delaney.
McDonough completed her hat trick 58 seconds into the second half when she finished a corner kick from Krol.
Senior forward Beth Pagano capped the onslaught with her second goal of the season, ending the game at 7-0.
With four dominating performances to start their season, the Lions will continue to look for ways to refine their game and to improve upon their new offensive-minded formation.
"We still have a few kinks to work out, but it's getting better," Delaney said. "After scrimmaging against NCAA Division I teams in preseason and playing the first few games, we are moving the ball around and finding the midfield a lot better."
The Lions' next matchup will be a New Jersey Athletic Conference home contest on Saturday against the Ramapo College Roadrunners at 1 p.m.
